51st state

:This article is about a hypothetical U.S. state. For the song, see 51st State. For the film, see The 51st State.

Use of "51st State" in Canada

Arguments for Canada joining the U.S. have rather more geographic and economic logic, but are still controversial. Polls conducted by Canadian Press in 2001 and 2002 found that 38 per cent of American respondents said they would be "in favour of Canada being annexed to the United States", while 49 per cent disagreed. 19.9 per cent of Canadian respondents agreed with the proposition of annexation, but 76.5 per cent rejected the idea. http://www.stevequayle.com/News.alert/Canada_Mexico/021014.annexing.Canada.html

Related Topics:
Canadian Press - 2001 - 2002

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In Canada, however, "the 51st state" is an emotional trigger phrase sometimes used in political debates to link an issue in Canadians' minds to the threat of Canadian annexation by the United States. It is generally used in such a way as to imply that if a certain political course is taken, Canada's destiny will be to become the 51st state. As the poll cited above shows, the majority of Canadians view this as a fate to be avoided.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Becoming "the 51st state" is usually raised either as a potential consequence of adopting policies that propose greater integration or cooperation with the United States (such as Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement in 1988, or the current debate over the creation of a common defense perimeter), or as a potential consequence of not adopting proposals intended to resolve the issue of Quebec sovereignty (such as the Charlottetown Accord in 1992, or the Clarity Act in 1999.)

Related Topics:
Canada-United States Free Trade Agreement - 1988 - Common defense perimeter - Quebec sovereignty - Charlottetown Accord - 1992 - Clarity Act - 1999

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In the latter cases, the reasoning is usually either that parts of Canada would be so economically damaged by Quebec's separation that joining the United States would be the only option left, or that without Quebec's French language and culture acting as a bulwark, Canada simply wouldn't be able to withstand the cultural pressure toward American statehood.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The phrase is usually used in local political debates, in polemic writing or in private conversations. It is rarely used by politicians themselves in a public context, although at certain times in Canadian history political parties have used other similarly loaded imagery to appeal to Canadians' gut instincts. For example, in the 1988 federal election, the anti-Free Trade Liberals ran an ad in which Tory strategists, upon the adoption of the agreement, slowly erased the Canada-US border from a desktop map of North America.

Related Topics:
Polemic - 1988 federal election - Liberals - Tory - North America

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The phrase is also designed to appeal to Canadians' fears of losing power in such a union, implying that all of Canada would have the power of just one state.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It should also be noted that the 1988 Free Trade Agreement was implemented, followed by the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement of 1993, and that the Charlottetown Accord failed. In each case, Canadians chose to follow the course which would supposedly lead to their "becoming the 51st state"; as of 2005, however, Canada is still an independent country.

Related Topics:
1988 - North American Free Trade Agreement - 1993 - Charlottetown Accord - As of 2005

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A few fringe groups in Canada have actively campaigned in favour of Canadian annexation by the United States, although they have not attracted much mainstream attention. See Annexationist movements of Canada.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The term has also been used whimsically to refer to individual Canadian provinces. A claim like "Alberta is the 51st state" implicitly suggests that culturally or politically, an individual region has more in common with one or more U.S. states than with another region within Canada. This often means a position further to the political right on economic issues; positions on other domestic issues ranging from official bilingualism to gun control to same-sex marriage are frequently also taken into account in making such comparisons as are economic, geographic and cultural ties to the United States or to an individual U.S. state.

Related Topics:
Alberta - Political right - Economic - Official bilingualism - Gun control - Same-sex marriage - Geographic - Cultural ties

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Another humorous suggestion is the Jesusland map, popularized in the U.S. and Canada after the 2004 United States Presidential election, which depicts Kerry-voting "blue states" joining the "United States of Canada", with the remaining Bush-voting "red states" (sometimes together with Alberta) becoming "Jesusland" (or, in alternative versions, "Redneckistan" or "Dumbfuckistan").

Related Topics:
Jesusland map - 2004 United States Presidential election - Kerry - Bush

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~